Title: Gods and Generals
Author: Jeff Shaara
Publisher: Ballantine Books 1996
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 512
Rating: 3/5 stars
Reading Challenges: TBR Reduction; Mount TBR
In this brilliantly written epic novel, Jeff Shaara traces the lives, passions, and careers of the great military leaders from the first gathering clouds of the Civil War. Here is Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, a hopelessly by-the-book military instructor and devout Christian who becomes the greatest commander of the Civil War; Winfield Scott Hancock, a captain of quartermasters who quickly establishes himself as one of the finest leaders of the Union army; Joshua Chamberlain, who gives up his promising academic career and goes on to become one of the most heroic soldiers in American history; and Robert E. Lee, never believing until too late that a civil war would ever truly come to pass. Profound in its insights into the minds and hearts of those who fought in the war, Gods and Generals creates a vivid portrait of the soldiers, the battlefields, and the tumultuous times that forever shaped the nation.
Good book, but I'll admit that war history is not my interest area. I wasn't as engaged with this book as others I have read. Or maybe it's because I have a fair knowledge of the players of the Civil War that I didn't really dive into this book. I can see the value of the book and it is well-written. It's just not my cup of tea.